Key Highlights
- Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK and potential future prime minister, faces racist and antisemitic allegations from former schoolmates.
- Farage denies the claims, stating that they are without foundation and attempts to smear his party.
- Ex-pupils claim Farage displayed offensive behavior as a teenager, including giving Nazi salutes and making racial slurs.
- The Guardian reported on the allegations, leading to a legal response from Farage’s team questioning the public interest in historic claims.
Rising Political Star Faces Controversial Claims
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK and a potential contender for the role of the United Kingdom’s next prime minister, is currently at the center of a controversy. Former students from his time at Dulwich College in south London have come forward to allege that he exhibited racist and antisemitic behavior as a teenager.
Farage, who has recently seen his party gain significant traction in opinion polls, emphatically denies these allegations, issuing a statement through The Guardian. He claims that the newspaper is attempting to smear Reform UK, a party leading in over 150 consecutive opinion polls according to Farage’s spokesperson Jane Dalton.
Specific Incidents Alleged by Ex-Pupils
According to several former students, including Peter Ettedgui and Professor Dave Edmonds, the allegations revolve around specific incidents where Farage was alleged to have engaged in offensive behavior. Ettedgui, now an award-winning director and producer, recalled that he felt humiliated by the antisemitic words of a 13-year-old Mr. Farage.
“He would sidle up to me and growl: ‘Hitler was right,’ or ‘Gas them,’ sometimes adding a long hiss to simulate the sound of the gas showers,” Ettedgui said, emphasizing the shocking nature of these remarks from what he describes as a young teenager.
He further added that Farage also urged pupils with overseas heritage to “go home.”
Professor Edmonds, another Jewish ex-pupil, noted that though he did not personally experience antisemitic insults, he remembered Mr. Farage using derogatory terms for people of Afro-Caribbean and south Asian origins.
Reform UK’s Denial and Legal Response
In response to the allegations, Reform UK has vehemently denied any wrongdoing. A spokesperson stated that “These allegations are entirely without foundation.” The party’s legal team questioned the public interest in reporting such historic claims nearly 50 years later.
“The Guardian has produced no contemporaneous record or corroborating evidence to support these disputed recollections from nearly 50 years ago,” said Dalton. She added, “It is no coincidence that this newspaper seeks to discredit Reform UK, a party leading in over 150 consecutive opinion polls and whose leader bookmakers now have as the favorite to be the next prime minister.”
Implications for Political Career
The timing of these allegations comes at a critical juncture for Farage. As his party gains momentum, any accusations of past misconduct could potentially impact public perception. The ongoing political landscape in the UK, with upcoming elections looming, means that such claims are particularly sensitive.
While many former students and contemporaries did not recall specific racist incidents, they did highlight Farage’s more general behavior as bumptious, rude, provocative, and self-centered during his school years.
The political narrative surrounding these allegations is likely to intensify in the run-up to the next election. The battle for public support and trust will be crucial for both Reform UK and its leader Nigel Farage.
